"It is hard to fail, but it is worse to never have tried to succeed."

We learn wisdom from failure much more than success. Do you ever wonder about those people that have everything handed to them and never have to work for anything in their lives? Do you ever think how easy life would be if you were this person or that person? Instead of being resentful, I actually feel sorry for these people. Part of life is taking chances....failing.....and then learning from those events. I have failed miserably this past year, however, would I be a better person in the long run if someone gave me a "good job" and money to cope with my problems? The answer is NO, what would I have learned about myself and the situation if the issues were resolved temporarily through monetary means?

The greatest mistake in life is to continually be afraid you will make one. This past year I left a "good" job in a tough sector of the economy. Many people said I was an idiot for leaving because the economy was crumbling and employment was tough. They were right....but did anyone ever ask how I felt each morning waking up wondering if this was going to be my last day of work? Did anyone ever ask how we felt living in AZ? We probably could have spent the next couple of years collecting a paycheck unhappily. Collecting a paycheck will help pay bills but no amount of money will compensate for the way we felt each morning.

We often discover what we will do, by finding out what we will not do. Desperation thwarted us into Twin Falls to accept a job as an insurance broker. The economy was in shambles and unemployment was beginning to skyrocket....I had to take any job offer I could get. I was romanced by high income potential only to find out it was at the expense of others. Selling insurance and financial products can be a highly lucrative career, but my morals and ethics started to get into the way. I was starting to see that people in this profession would not sell the "best" or "cheapest" product to their customer, but rather the product that earned them the highest commission. This experience forced us to evaluate the type of people we want to be in life and that greed and money don't create happiness. Many of us are casualties of greed because of the mortgage and real estate industries, however, we are far better off living through it. It has forced us to analyze risk and that following the crowd to make a buck isn't the best solution.

Failure is only the opportunity to more intelligently begin again. So, here we are, living in Minnesota thankful for family to let us regroup temporarily. Many people might still be saying, "I told you so," but those are the same people that are too afraid to take chances or had their entire lives handed to them. We appreciate the support, no need to worry about us, we will be fine.

After all, what would life be like if we had no courage to attempt anything?

By: Corey